Ain't Nobody Got Time For That

I don't know about you, but I'm a pretty busy guy. I mean between work, kids, baths, breakfasts, housework, yard work, church, errands, family...shoot, sometimes there just aren't enough hours in the day. You know what I mean.

And in the middle of it all, what's usually the first to get the axe when schedules get tight? For me, prayer and my Bible.

I find myself thinking "In today's world, how can I have a daily Bible study? Ain't nobody got time for that."

Too blunt? Maybe. But when we brush off God in our hurriedness, we're basically saying "God? Ain't nobody got time for You."

Let me challenge you, and myself. Can we find five minutes? I can. Less time on Facebook. Less time watching the news. Less time reading the paper or a magazine or an article on line.

One less YouTube video. One less Tweet. One less text. I can find those few extra minutes in my day that I waste on trivial things, and re-offer them back to God.

Start saying "Five minutes with God...everybody got time for that."

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In the Word: Psalm 5:3 - O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.

Extended Study: Read and meditate on all of Psalm 119.

Prayer: Gracious and patient Lord, I repent of the indifference I've shown You. You are important to me and my days are incomplete unless I spend time with You. Help me as I commit myself to the promise of daily communing with You, in Your Word and in prayer. Amen.

Praying, First String

I have to say, I was completely encouraged today when I read through Pastor Pete Wilson’s blogpost, I Stink At Prayer (http://withoutwax.tv/2008/04/07/i-stink-at-prayer/). “Encouraged” because, that’s me, man. I mean, if there’s public praying to be done, I promise you, I am not your guy. Not that I can’t or that I dislike it or get stage fright or something. But there’s something about my public prayers that’s just…well…disjointed, is probably a good word.

There are certain people I’ve encountered throughout my life who are awesome prayers. I mean seriously, they say just the right thing, in just the right way. The content is perfect. The length is perfect. And the language they use is that perfect balance between approachability and poetic. You know what I mean. Our pastor at Corner-Stone Church, Pastor Darrel Rewis, is one of those people. Just a natural gift for it, it seems.

That, however, is not me. I have wished to be a prayer like that, but it just doesn’t fall naturally to me.

One of the great praying pastors who specifically stands out for me is Bro. Curtis Hammond, who (now retired) mentored me many moons ago as a young man of God, and led the Freedom Church of God flock for many, many years. I’ve had other people at Freedom say to me “Now that man can really pray”. And yes he could…Brother Hammond could for sure, flat out pray. When he prayed, I could just imagine God saying to the angels “Now boys, that’s how it’s done.”

So what’s a guy to do? I mean, if you’re going to be a Christian, you kindof have to pray. And if you’re just not that fluid at it in public (like me), well then that might really be a sore spot for you. So I started asking myself some basic questions. Maybe you’re asking yourself some of the same questions: 

·       What is a “good prayer”?

·       What is my goal, when I pray?

·       Can someone learn to pray? Isn’t that fake?

Frankly, I think I could write a book on this. But to scratch the surface, these were the (beginning) answers that made sense to me. See if they speak to you too.

What is a “good prayer”? Well there are lots of possible descriptions, but I think it all comes down to one word. “Love”. When we pray beyond ourselves (not that we can’t pray for our own issues), we tap into one of the real essential driving forces, of Jesus. Selfless compassion for those around us.

What is my goal, when I pray? This ties back to question number 1, but also…when I ask this, I also have to ask “How often do I ask God for something when I pray?” I believe God honors the requests that we bring before Him, but am I also compelled to just ramble on about His goodness, sometimes? We use God as our own little genie in a bottle so often, that we don’t even think about it, until we stop and look. Maybe I need to realign my focus for some of my prayers.

Can someone learn to pray? Isn’t that fake? This is touchy. The answer to the first part is an obvious “yes”. Jesus said in Matthew 6:9-13, “This is how you pray.” So yes, God is cool with us breaking it down into learnable chunks. Jesus actually encourages us to do what He does!

Is that fake? Well, it depends. Kind of back to “What is your goal?” I think we should ask ourselves “Why do I want to be a better public prayer?” Is it to impress the deacons? Is it to practice our public speaking skills? Is it to have a platform to express our thoughts? Is it to reach out to the lost, more effectively? Is it to skillfully praise our Creator?

In a nutshell, I look at it like, I want to learn how to publicly pray in a way that both, honors God AND speaks to the body in a relevant manner. And I think a conscious effort to improve my public delivery is perfectly acceptable, even desirable, to God.

After that, everything else should just take care of itself.

More on this subject to come later…I like this. :) I need a lot of work in this area, and I believe there is much for us to learn. Til then…!

FIC…Ricky

When You Get Chopped

Let me ask you a question: “How will you act when you get chopped?”

“What?” you may be asking yourself.

How will you act…what will you do…who will you honor, when you get chopped, cut, slammed, tackled, hit, slandered, beaten, knocked down, humiliated?

I was talking Sunday with Phoelicia, one of the members of our Church's praise team, about the following story. And the more I think about it, well, the more I think about it. Let me share this with you…

My wife and I absolutely love The Food Network. My personal favorite was the old Japanese Iron Chef! (Classic!) We like Bobby Flay or Guy Fieri and Duff Goldman or Alton Brown. We also like the new Food Network Star winner, Aarti, and Aarti Party. (I just like the way Aarti says it. :))

But we also watch a lot of the show, Chopped, where four chefs compete in these surprise ingredient lightning round type settings, with one chef being “chopped”, or eliminated, with every challenge, until only one remains. Brutal.

Lance Nitahara

The other night, one of the chefs on Chopped was a Christian named Lance Nitahara. A really humble guy who is the head chef for a Christian organization, Camp of the Woods (http://www.camp-of-the-woods.org/) in the Adirondacks of Speculator, NY.

When he introduced himself, I was struck by his openness about his faith (why would that strike me???). And he talked about his love for God and how he prayed for God to grant him things like creativity and strength in the contest, and to help him compete in a way that would honor Him.

Wow.

Now, how many of us would pray that prayer?

Don't answer...

Anyway, to make a long story short, he competed very, very well and advanced to the final one-on-one round before finally being chopped. But the judges raved about both competitors’ dishes, saying that was some of the best food they had ever tasted in any Chopped contest.

And when Lance left the judges, he was smiling and polite and still thanking God for the opportunity to have competed. Even as he left, having been defeated, he didn’t allow the situation to defeat HIM. He didn’t let the pain of losing, overshadow his true purpose…which was to honor God with his actions, words, talents, demeanor, looks, motions, comments.

He maintained the heart and attitude of Christ, even as he was chopped.

It was very inspiring. And personally, I think we should all acknowledge Lance for his skill and talent and for his Christ-like demeanor throughout the entire process. He certainly doesn’t appear to be up for honoring himself, so maybe his Christian brothers and sisters should do it on his behalf.

(As a matter of fact, if you actually want to do that, email your thank-yous and comments to Camp Of the Woods at info@camp-of-the-woods.org.)

So what does all this have to do with me or you or God or being a Christian or anything remotely important?

Well, a lot, actually. Look…

When it comes to how Christians should act, Paul gives us a down-n-dirty schooling in the first two verses of Romans:

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” - Romans 12: 1-2

A “living sacrifice”? “Acceptable to God”? “Transformed by the renewing of your mind”? That’s pretty heavy stuff. Very, very deep. Surely this passage was designed to be inspiring through its poetry than to be taken literally in application. Right?

I don’t think so.

I challenge you to admit, that while these verses tell of a state of being that is probably a world apart from where most of us are (myself included), it’s also one that we can (and should) aspire to. And Lance Nitahara exemplified this passage, perfectly, for me. So it can be done.

Let’s get real…I was honestly watching the show, waiting for the guy to say a foul word. Or do something sneaky against one of the other chefs. Or even glare at someone in anger or jealously. Probably so I could shout “I knew it. I KNEW it!” at the TV.

But, nothing.

I mean nothing. He was true to his profession…that is, his “profession” of faith.

He was presenting his body as a living sacrifice, or to be of good use, to God. He was IN the competition, but did not conform to the typical mannerisms of the normal competitor. And I believe he displayed qualities that proved the will of God.

Can we do the same? Can we hold ourselves to a higher standard? Can we conduct ourselves, even in times of stress and discomfort and duress and public view, in a way that is not only acceptable to God, but that proves His will?

Think about that. Will your actions, regardless of your situation, prove that God’s will is being accomplished in that place or in that time? Proving God’s will…that’s mega-heavy.


Let's face it, there’s more here than I can cover in one blog entry. So let’s stop here and let that sink in. I know I could stand to let this whole idea absorb more, into my own life.

And for more detail on exactly what kinds of behavior God expects from His people, you could go to any one of dozens of biblical passages. But since we’re already in Romans, take a minute and read the entire twelfth and thirteenth chapters. And get your pencil out.

And be prepared to ask yourself “How will I act when I get chopped?”


Prayer: Lord, please help me to be aware of the fact that my life is not my own. But that while I am subject only to your judgment, I am bound by my love for You, to conduct myself in a way that is honorable to You, in all the moments of my life. Please help me to desire to live, constantly, in that way. Please help me to lead others to look to You, as they see the shadow of Christ in my actions and in my heart.

Take Away: Think and pray about the question: “How would I act if no one is watching?” Put yourself in a hypothetical, tempting situation and then imagine that you are truly alone. How do you react? Don’t just cop-out with some religiously correct answer. Be emotionally honest with what you would desire to do and why you would do it or not do it. Give yourself details to make your picture as life-like as possible. Then apply it!